The Gentle Birth Method
The Month-by-Month Jeyarani Way Programme
Dr Gowri Motha and Karen Swan MacLeod

Table of Contents

Cover Page

Title Page

Preface by Elle Macpherson

Foreword by Dr Yehudi Gordon

Introduction

SECTION A Preparing for Birth

Physical Preparation

Mental Preparation

Emotional Preparation

SECTION B The month-by-month programme

Introduction to the Programme

Getting Started

First Trimester

Second Trimester

Third Trimester

SECTION C Having Your Gentle Birth

The Birth Day

Established Labour: The First Stage

Established Labour: The Second Stage

Established Labour: The Third Stage

Intervention

Caesareans

Post-natal Care

SECTION D A-Z Guide to Symptoms and Potential Problems in Each Trimester

The First Trimester

The Second Trimester

The Third Trimester

APPENDICES

Appendix A

Appendix B

Appendix C

Websites

Acknowledgements

Copyright

About the Publisher

Preface by Elle Macpherson

I first met Gowri when I was pregnant with my second son. My first labour had been quite long and although I knew this one was likely to be shorter, I wanted, if not a guarantee to a pain-free, 20-minute birth, at least the inside track to a shortcut. Who wouldn’t? We all want to hurry up and meet our babies, after all.

Gowri explained to me quite early on in my pregnancy that, with guided preparations, I could have as natural – and short – a birth as nature intended for me, so I was more than happy to put in the groundwork. Daily exercise and a healthy diet are a part of my lifestyle anyway, but with international travel as a regular feature in my schedule, it was really important for me to feel rooted during my pregnancy. I particularly found the visualisations and hypnotic birth rehearsals allowed me to ‘nest’ and concentrate on the baby, regardless of whether I was 35,000 feet in the air, or two days’ travel away from home.

And it worked for me! I had an incredibly positive, emotional, and nurturing waterbirth. I delivered my son on my due date after a relatively short four-hour labour. It was the most amazing experience I’ve ever had, and thanks to Gowri’s preparation I was able to cope with the pain and be 100 per cent present without drugs for the incredible moment of his birth. To add to my joy I did not tear or need to have an episiotomy.

Now I send all my girlfriends to Gowri’s clinic as soon as they tell me they’re expecting. She’s been one of my best-kept secrets – until now.

Foreword by Dr Yehudi Gordon

It is a great pleasure to write the foreword for Gowri Motha’s book on Gentle Birth. As a fellow obstetrician with a similar passion for natural, active and water births, I believe that Gowri’s philosophy, approach and incredible enthusiasm are an inspiration and great help for women. I can vouch through experience that women who have met and worked with Gowri and her team are far more likely to have a gentle, natural birth.

Gowri is a fully trained obstetrician and gynaecologist. Gowri was born in Sri Lanka and completed her training in India, so the principles and practices of Ayurveda are second nature to her. In her birth preparation work she teams up with a group of like-minded women. Gowri is, above all, a team player, with each pregnant woman and her baby taking centre stage.

Gowri calls her birth preparation ‘Jeyarani’. On a foundation of Ayurveda she combines aspects from a number of disciplines, including nutrition and complementary therapies, such as reflexology, massage, healing, Bowen, Reiki and Cranio-sacral therapy. The accent is on helping women feel profoundly in touch with their bodies and their babies and building their confidence in their natural ability to give birth.

The term ‘midwife’ means, literally, ‘with woman’ and conveys a role of shared wisdom and loving support. Gowri’s team of therapists helps a pregnant mother feel loved, valued, secure and held at a number of levels. Physically, each woman is encouraged to release strain and tension throughout her body, with particular focus on the birthing areas and on the breath. Emotionally, she is welcomed, her feelings are acknowledged and valued, and her confidence is boosted: the Jeyarani technique creates a space that allows each woman to be who she is and access her own very special power to nurture herself and her baby, and prepare for birth. Midwives work from the outside, but the Jeyarani preparation programme encourages the woman’s internal midwife and mothering to blossom.

Visualization plays an important role. Each woman is guided to visualize her power as a woman, the power of her contractions and most importantly the ability of her body to open and give birth. This builds self-confidence and harmonizes body, mind and spirit. The experience of preparation is a source of joy: apprehension and fear diminish and women tend to feel wholly in touch with themselves. Women are also encouraged to eat well, exercise and stretch with Yoga. Gowri also teaches gentle self-massage of the vagina and perineum, which brings women in touch with this important birth area and prepares it for opening and stretching at birth, acting as a type of biofeedback to release tension.

The Jeyarani programme does not focus exclusively on pregnancy and birth: Gowri also encourages women to consider their transition to motherhood and look ahead to bonding with their babies, and adjusting to the birth of a new family.

The stories in this book speak for themselves and are a testament to the Jeyarani Birth Preparation method, but above all to Gowri and her team, who encourage pregnant women to tune into, believe and exercise their power. Working with Gowri does not automatically guarantee a natural birth, as there are many different variables that affect each baby’s unique entry to the world. It does however, make it much more likely. It is a privilege to attend the labours of women who have been assisted by Gowri, and to celebrate the births of their babies who have been welcomed and lovingly nurtured throughout pregnancy.

Introduction

I have always been bemused by the fact that, as pregnant women, we spend longer preparing the nursery for the baby, than our bodies. We sigh over wall-paper swatches, pore over name books and coo over cots without once thinking about conditioning ourselves for birth. Perhaps the inevitability of it just leaves us wanting to bury our heads in the sand, anxiously awaiting those first rumbling contractions, or maybe the thought of it is just too frightening to contemplate. After all, birth is packaged to us as a traumatic, painful and undignified rite of passage that nearly every woman – sooner or later – must go through. Who would want to dwell on that? And yet, we must. The statistics bear out these preconceived notions of what birth must be like: a recent survey reported that over 80 per cent of women were frightened during labour and 53 per cent found giving birth ‘far more shocking’ than they thought it would be. It’s a two-fold problem. On the one hand, some women’s expectations are not being managed, so the birthing experience is a raw shock for them; on the other, there are those women who are going into labour fully expecting it to be horrendous, and so it is. A big part of this latter problem is that the vast majority of young women who are now at childbearing age have grown up with the received wisdom that this is how birth is. But it isn’t what I grew up with. Born in Sri Lanka and educated in India, my notion of childbirth was rooted in a far simpler reality – that it is natural, quick and even reasonably gentle. Please don’t misread ‘gentle’ for ‘painless’, it isn’t and I don’t want to imply that at all. But it is manageable and let’s not forget that as a physical function that has been honed over centuries, childbirth is actually what our bodies are best at.

I only met this negative attitude to birth when I came to England and was struck by the irony that the sophisticated technology that has made childbirth safer for women than ever before has also made it harder. Over-stretched doctors, fearful of complications and litigation, are too quick to intervene at the first sign of difficulty, steadily undermining the fact that childbirth is a naturally occurring event that women are fully capable of achieving.

I should know – I was one of those doctors. As an obstetrician working at various hospitals around London, I delivered hundreds of babies. Unfortunately, most of the mothers were rigid with fear, in poor physical condition and emotionally out of control. By the time I saw them, the best I could do was administer an epidural and apply the forceps. The medical community’s attitude towards childbirth was, and is, of crisis management, of dealing with the complications the pregnant mothers were exhibiting once in labour. Very little thought was given to stopping the problems before they started, of getting to the root of the problem. So I began to wonder – could the quality of a mother’s pregnancy determine her labour experience? If she primed herself with physical stamina and mental resilience, could she condition herself for birth, like an athlete training for a race?

That was 15 years ago and today I have refined my results into a concise birth preparation programme that will hone your body and mind for the birthing process. The programme works on three levels. The first tackles your physical condition, aiming to detoxify and decongest your body through a wholefood diet, physical treatments and daily exercise. The idea is to purify your body so that there is no residual muscle tension, water retention or joint stiffness to impede the pelvic opening and loosening that is a necessary precursor for a gentle birth.

The second level addresses your mental attitude and any resistance you may have towards pregnancy – even if the baby was planned – or any fears about the birth. To do this, we move through carefully conceived visualization and self-hypnosis techniques that re-evaluate your feelings, develop your mental strength and give you the confidence to manage your contractions and remain in control of your labour. And finally, we engage on an emotional level – extending a loving welcome to your unborn baby and learning how to bond with your baby in the womb.

The fact that this programme is holistic and yet underpinned by sound medical judgement and experience means that The Gentle Birth Method is a unique approach to pregnancy and birth. However, if I had to stipulate the fundamental difference between this book and many other pregnancy guides, it is that this is a comprehensive programme for you to follow every day of your pregnancy. It isn’t a reference guide to pick up as and when you have a query, or want a homoeopathic remedy to an ailment. Nor is it a theoretical textbook about pregnancy and childbirth. This book goes further than any other by giving you a framework that shows you how to ‘be’ pregnant. The general attitude towards pregnancy is that it is a passive state of being, something that ‘happens’ to you for nine months. But I firmly believe pregnancy is an interactive, dynamic condition that you can nurture and mould to your own expectations. So keep this book in your handbag, in your desk at work, or on your bedside table – you’re going to find it an invaluable aid.

The Gentle Birth Method is for all mothers, whatever their age, culture, religion, or social status. And it isn’t just for the first-time mother either. In fact, in many ways, it is more relevant to those women who have already had a pregnancy or birth experience. If you have had a traumatic first birth and are terrified of repeating the whole experience – and a shocking amount of women are – this book is for you. If you have tragically suffered a miscarriage or stillbirth, then this programme can help you. Of course, it cannot offer cures to the specific clinical conditions that may have undermined the viability of your previous pregnancy, nor can it change your past. But, by giving you a specific weekly framework within which to operate, you can concentrate on nurturing this baby. The difference this time around is that you are now making yourself ready for the birthing experience.

By the time you read the last page of this book, birth won’t be able to frighten, overwhelm or surprise you. You will know how to reduce the amount of pain you feel, and the clever little shortcuts to full cervical dilatation. You will know not only what is happening to your body during childbirth, but also your baby’s. And whilst it’s doing all this, The Gentle Birth Method will cosset you, restore your faith and return birth to you as a joyous, happy event that is neither feared, nor needs to be interfered with.

More than 1200 mothers have followed the Gentle Birth programme and our results consistently show that we have improved birth for women and their babies. Our figures for total time spent in labour, intervention (i.e. epidurals, ventouse, forceps), episiotomies and Caesarean sections dramatically undercut the national averages and are clear proof that there is another way for women. But numbers aren’t the motivation for The Gentle Birth Method. Motherhood is the greatest gift and it deserves a happy beginning. It is my hope that this programme will help you celebrate pregnancy as one of the most precious chapters in your life, and equip you with the potential for a birth that is a calm, intimate and bonding experience for both you and your baby.

DR GOWRI MOTHA

SECTION A Preparing for Birth

Physical Preparation
Diet

If you imagine that pregnancy means waddling, puffing up stairs and being the size of a house, then you’re going to be pleased you bought this book. Because if there’s one thing that characterizes absolutely all the mothers who follow my programme, it’s this – they’re light on their feet.

At nine months, when most expectant mothers can’t get their shoes on, mine have a spring in their step. When most can’t get off the sofa, mine go off on a two-mile walk – they’ve got energy, confidence and excitement, and the only water they retain is kept in a bottle in their handbags.

You’ve heard of those women who are back in their pre-pregnancy clothes two weeks after giving birth – well, you could be one of them. I’m not advocating no weight gain during pregnancy by any means – in fact it’s crucial that mothers lay down some fat – but I do believe that mothers should control their weight gain in order to modulate the size of their baby. Babies are definitely bigger when the mother is overweight and both factors – big babies and overweight mummies – lead to a higher incidence of complicated births. My studies show that an optimum-sized baby for a mother of average build leads to a gentler birth – and less incidence of post-natal depression, because the mother doesn’t have to add getting her figure back to her ‘To Do’ list.

How can this sort of pregnancy be yours? Well, in the first instance, by following a simple diet. But before you gasp with horror at the thought of expectant mothers on diets, this is absolutely not about losing weight, deprivation or hunger. Yes, it does involve excluding certain foods – I ask all my mothers to cut out wheat, refined carbohydrates (puddings, chocolate, bread, biscuits and so on) and, in the last month, gluten – but here’s why.

When I was working as an obstetrician in an NHS hospital, the same thing happened every night when I was on call: I would be woken from my sleep to attend a mother with complications. The midwives would tell me, ‘this lady has been in labour for 24 hours, she’s now been pushing for two hours and the baby’s stuck’. I would do a vaginal examination and find that the tissues were congested and swollen around the baby’s head, the baby’s head was squashed and moulding, and all around it was oedema (water retention creating an obstruction). It was ghastly and the only option was to apply forceps and drag the babies out. I think I was quite a skilled operator and tried to be as gentle as I could, but this situation necessitates an episiotomy and I despaired of having to carry out this procedure on women night after night.

Birth Story: Pasha

It was a Sunday morning when I awoke with the knowledge that Maya – my first daughter – was coming. It was a wonderful sensation of just knowing. I paced the house beaming ‘my baby is coming’. I called Gowri and she came over at 11am. She examined me – I was 3cm dilated and purring like a fat, happy cat. Gowri talked me through a relaxation process, helping me to access the knowledge that I was safe and well, that my body knew exactly what to do; that I would just be opening, slowly and gently, ready to give birth at the hospital that afternoon.

My husband went ahead and prepared the birthing pool at the hospital, and we followed him when I was about 6cm dilated. On arrival, the midwife asked me how dilated I thought I was. I told her 6cm or so, but she laughed and said she would be very surprised – that I looked far too relaxed to be that far dilated.

To her surprise I was 9cm and my daughter was born within eight hours of the first contraction. She was a very relaxed baby, only crying when hungry. Her first months were spent arms spread out, palms up, completely relaxed, open and trusting in everything. I feel sure this is because of her peaceful birth.

I came to the conclusion that the underlying problem for a lot of these women was the mechanical fit. If you had a smaller baby, and a fit mother with an uncongested pelvis, it would be easier for the baby to pass through the birth passages. I was aware that in China, for example, women working in the paddy fields commonly squatted down and delivered their babies within the hour. Why? The reasons are simple enough. By squatting and rising as they work all day, they naturally encourage their baby into the optimal foetal position, and this exercise also aids lymphatic drainage within the pelvis and increases their pelvic mobility. But crucially, they also eat a wholefood diet of rice and vegetables, so their bodies are clear of toxins and supple. The importance of diet in the equation is highlighted by the fact that in developing countries that have adopted western diets and lifestyles, the number of caesareans and medically-assisted births has risen. Diet is the deciding factor.

However, it was 15 years ago that I came to this conclusion and voiced my concern that we were over-feeding mothers here. Not surprisingly, everyone thought I was crazy at the time and I met with a lot of hostility. There was a huge fear that babies would be born small. However, such scepticism proved unfounded – over the years my mothers have delivered babies of very healthy weights, usually 7lb plus. My emphasis was, and is, simply on having babies in keeping with the mother’s frame. Today the ‘eating for two’ mindset is becoming redundant, as people are much more aware that a pregnant woman only needs an extra 200 calories per day – that’s only an extra bowl of cereal per day.

I remember very clearly one mother who was admitted to the delivery suite in labour. She was a Filipino lady who was naturally petite – she can’t have been any taller than 5ft – but she was grossly overweight. She had been in labour for 18 hours and was still only 3-4cm dilated. The baby’s head was high up, her whole uterus was like a mound and the labour was clearly not progressing any further. I enquired about her diet and learnt that, since coming to England, she had started eating food that was alien to her native diet – such as bread, sausages and pâté – and she’d been eating too much of it. The result? She had to have a caesarean to deliver an 11lb baby when, according to her frame, she should have had a 6-7lb baby.

Invariably, whenever I was presented with mothers with huge abdomens and cervixes that wouldn’t open and I asked about their diet, they would list their preference for comfort foods: ‘Oh I had nausea and couldn’t eat anything but toast’, or ‘I was addicted to chocolate’. This led me to think about dietary deficiencies, such as magnesium or chromium, which can lead to cravings. Soon I was beginning to think like a nutritionist.

What effects do certain foods have on our bodies? Wheat, for example, is known to create water retention. The first thing most nutritionists advise when presented with a patient complaining of neck tension and headaches, is to eliminate wheat from their diets. Eight times out of ten, the headaches disappear. Given that pelvic oedema is very often the underlying cause for inconsistent labours, I reasoned that wheat could be the culprit, congesting the vaginal tissues and restricting the cervix from gently opening and widening. I became even more convinced when I started asking about the birth experiences of women diagnosed with coeliac disease. These women simply cannot eat wheat or gluten and although there has been no formal study into this, my own interviews with some of these women revealed that they enjoy incredibly short labours.

Sugar is problematic too. Sugar is metabolized via the Krebs cycle – the name given to the biochemical process that releases energy from the molecules of sugar. Studies have shown that a large number of free radicals are released during this process. The body finds it hard to neutralize these and they attack connective tissues like muscles, tendons and ligaments. When you are pregnant, you need your pelvic ligaments to be extremely supple and flexible, so avoiding sugar and sugary foods can prevent toxins being deposited in your uterus, cervix and pelvic structures.

Since my eureka moment 15 years ago, I have refined my nutritional guidelines into simple rules that are neither aggressive nor dangerous. Of course, there are times when that cake has your name on it, or it’s difficult to resist the convenience of grabbing a sandwich for lunch. You’re absolutely right, it can be difficult resisting the ‘forbidden foods’ on any diet, let alone whilst pregnant when cravings are enhanced. And of course there will be days when you feel frustrated, angry, or resentful at being forbidden from eating what you want – especially if, as is likely, you’ve grown up with the received wisdom that pregnancy affords you a guilt-free opportunity to eat whatever you like.

But when the sugar’s calling, try to remember this. By buying this book you have already exercised your desire for a beautiful, blooming pregnancy and a gentle, controlled labour – and it is something you can achieve with focus, commitment and belief. Ultimately, no one else can do it for you and if you do cheat, you cheat only yourself.

So think positively. I like the old epithet: ‘Rob Peter to pay Paul’. Compromise now for reward later. You’ve got just 35 weeks to follow this diet and get your body into tip-top condition and pristine ‘birthfitness’. It’s not so long in the grand scheme of things and you’ll thank yourself afterwards. After the birth, my mothers always tell me how glad they are that they followed the eating plan.

Asian Culture and Pregnant Mothers

In South Indian and Sri-Lankan culture – which I was brought up in – it is customary for close relatives on both sides of the family to visit a pregnant mother regularly and take her some prepared food. Feeding a pregnant mother is considered to be one of the most meritorious acts in the Hindu religion and women within the extended family take pride in sending food to the pregnant mother. This time-honoured tradition gives practical support to the mother and enables her to rest, giving her a break from cooking. It also acknowledges the pregnancy and shows that the extended family has already begun to care for the unborn baby.

I tell all my mothers that you don’t need to be Indian to follow this tradition. If your mother, mother-in-law, sister or best friend lives nearby, perhaps they could each cook you one meal a week. It can free up a valuable few hours for you in the evenings, particularly if you are still working. Just subtly give them your diet guidelines first – you don’t want them turning up with a meal that has taken hours to prepare but is unsuitable for you.

General Dietary Guidelines

Below you will find lists of both foods to avoid and foods you should actively look to include in your diet. For brevity’s sake and so as to keep the number of Dos and Don’ts being issued to you at a minimum, you will find that this list is not comprehensive. As a general rule, where a food has not been included on either list, you can assume it is okay to eat it, but be guided by your common sense as to whether or not it is suitable for this programme. Above all, the most important list to abide by is the Foods to Avoid section.

Foods to Avoid

Fruit: bananas (mucus-producing), grapes and mango (very high in sugar), citrus fruits

Wheat: bread, pasta and cereals made from wheat

Sugar: cane and refined sugar, fizzy drinks and fruit squashes, sugared cereals, chocolate, biscuits, cakes, puddings (if you have a sweet tooth you can have 2 teaspoons of honey per day)

Vegetables: restrict cooked tomatoes, reduce consumption of aubergines and potatoes, and eat raw salads, spinach and beetroot greens in moderation. Both in Ayurveda and in the Microbiotic diet lightly steamed vegetables are regarded as highly superior to raw vegetables. This is because plant cellulose is digested in your gut by bacteria and this can release large quantities of gas. Once vegetables are cooked it is easier for the bacteria to digest them. In addition to this, in pregnancy the pancreas slows down its secretions of digestive enzymes. So to avoid abdominal distention and discomfort it is advisable to eat steamed or lightly cooked vegetables.

Meat: preserved meats, sausages, pâtés, pork and red meat

Fish: tuna has recently been given a bad press because of high levels of mercury found in its flesh (as a result to industrial waste dumping in the oceans). The metabolism of the tuna collects the mercury wastes easily and this can be passed on to the baby through the placenta, so it’s best to avoid it while pregnant.

Foods to Enjoy

Fruit: pears – the royal fruit, lots of calcium; pineapples – for digestion; apples; peaches; nectarines; plums; avocado; apricots (high in iron)

Caution: have only three fruit portions a day. If you are eating dried fruits, try to choose unsulphured ones and count it as part of your fresh fruit quota. In addition to whole fruit, you may have ¹/₃ of a glass (150ml) of pressed or squeezed fruit juice a day.

Carbohydrates: rice (preferably brown), corn pasta, oats, barley, lentils

Vegetables: cooked greens, marrows, cucumber, carrots, parsnips and, as a general rule, any local vegetables that are in season (as long as they are not on the ‘avoid’ list)

Meat: chicken and occasionally lamb

Fish: with the exception of tuna, all types of fish are good. Oily fish like mackerel and salmon (preferably organic) are particularly important because they contain omega-3 oils (see box below).

Omega-3 fats

It is important to make omega-3 fatty acids a regular part of your diet for the following reasons:

 They help foetal brain and nerve tissue development.

 They help boost your metabolism, immune system and skeletal system.

 They are good for the brain, helping to elevate your mood and improve memory. They can even help stave off cravings for carbohydrates.

Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in oily fish such as anchovies, herring, mackerel, salmon, sardine and trout. Try to eat such fish three times a week at least. However, because of concerns about mercury and other contaminants in deep-sea fish, pregnant mothers may prefer to buy the fish oil supplement MorDHA, which has been filtered and chilled to remove mercury and other toxins. A vegetarian alternative is to get your omega-3 from oil: hempseed oil, walnut oil, flaxseed oil (also called linseed) or from seeds: pumpkin seeds, walnuts, flaxseeds. The oil or seeds can be sprinkled over foods such as cereal. (Note: Flaxseeds (linseeds) are very hard, therefore either grind them lightly (a coffee grinder is good for this) or soak them overnight.) You need about one large tablespoon of the oil or seeds a day. You can also buy the oil in capsule form. Recommended brands are: Mother Hemp Oil (hempseed oil), flaxseed oil, or Dr Udo’s oils. (For stockists of all sources of Omega-3 supplements see Appendix C, page 312.)

Note: Flaxseed oil is the world’s richest source of omega-3, containing double that of fish oils. The essential fatty acids omega-6 and omega-9 are also beneficial and are often found with omega-3 supplements. The ideal proportion of these oils is 3:(omega-3):2(omega-6):1(omega-9). This perfect combination is found in hempseed oil.

Nutritional and Herbal Supplements

As well as following the dietary guidelines outlined above I also recommend that mothers take nutritional supplements to maximize nutritional status and aid digestion. This is especially important during pregnancy as the digestive system is under a lot of strain during pregnancy and this can result in problems like constipation, heartburn, reflux and so on.

I recommend that every pregnant mother should take the following supplements:

 A general vitamin, mineral and trace element supplement. These are widely available and called ‘Pre-natal’ or ‘Pregnancy’ vitamins. Solgar and Biocare are the brands that I recommend.

 Probiotics are the helpful bacteria in the gut that break down the cell walls of vegetable matter and make the goodness within more accessible for digestion and absorption. They are available as capsules or tablets (Biocare and Dr Udo brands are good) and should be taken twice a day, half an hour before meals. Alternatively probiotic drinks and yoghurts from supermarkets can be taken if they are sugar-free and well within their sell-by date.

 Herbs are also an important part of this programme and I recommend my mothers have two different sets of herbs. These help prepare your body for a gentle birth and should be taken daily throughout pregnancy from week 13. These come in the following forms:Herbal TeaIngredients: false unicorn root, squaw vine leaves, cramp cut bark, raspberry leaf. This tea detoxifies and tones the uterus. Place one teaspoon of the above mixture in a teapot then add one pint of boiling water. Let it steep for 10 minutes, then strain and drink slowly. You can drink it all in one go or half in the morning and half later (just warm it up). It can look an alarmingly large volume to drink but many of my mothers come to really enjoy it.Baladi Choornam drinkVarious Ayurvedic herbs are included in this powder (for stockist details see Appendix C, page 312). The powder is mixed with 1/2 a cup of warm milk (goat’s milk or rice milk is preferable to cow’s milk as it’s more digestible). It should be taken after your evening meal. This is started at week 13 of pregnancy. The herb Bala, the main ingredient of Baladi choornam, has the following properties:

– It reduces the undesirable effects of nervous excitability within the pregnant mother

– Has a calming effect on the central nervous system

– Regulates blood pressure

– Regulates the hormones of pregnancy

– Controls blood sugars thereby helping you to eat healthily (eating healthily can modulate your baby’s weight)

– Very mild diuretic

– Stimulates regular bowel movements

– Softens the cervix and pelvic tissues

In addition to these herbal drinks, you should also take a tiny pill of herbs called the Dhanwantaram pill – I call them ‘baby pills’. These contain potentized digestive herbs that are good for your digestion and absorption of nutrients and, as such, they help to nourish you and your baby. (See Appendix C, page 312 for stockist details.)

Dose: 1 a day along with your herbs.

Homoeopathic Tissue Salt Programme

During pregnancy the baby requires certain salts, which it gets at the expense of the mother. This programme will help to make good any salt deficiencies and help the baby with its salt requirement. Some health food stores sell tissue salts alongside their homoeopathic remedies, or alternatively try companies that supply homoeopathic remedies via the internet (see Appendix C, page 312). Alternatively, the Homoeopathic Tissue Salt Programme is available from the Jeyarani clinic.

Remedies:

Calc. Fluor. – for bone development and elasticity of connective tissue (helps prevent stretch marks)

Mag. Phos. – for heartburn and nerve development

Ferr. Phos. – for blood oxygenation

Nat. Mur. – helps control salt and therefore fluid balance, and helps prevent

swollen ankles

Silica – for teeth, bones, hair and general strength

Dosage:

Take one tablet of each twice a day, morning and evening. The potency is 6c. If you are lucky enough to have a homoeopathic pharmacy nearby, they will combine the required tissue salts into one tablet for you – in which case take one twice a day.

Pregnant mothers may also like to take the following supplements:

 Digestive enzymes. I recommend Biocare or Dr Udo’s digestive enzymes as a digestion support for mothers with abdominal distension and discomfort. Take one with breakfast and one with your main meal.

 Ambrotose. In the late 1990s a Nobel Prize was awarded for the discovery of 8 non-calorific sugars that make up cell membrane receptors for cell to cell communication. In nature all these 8 essential sugars should be available to us through the food that we eat; however, due to the storage of fresh produce and undesirable modern farming methods the food we eat is lacking in some of these nutrients. During pregnancy they are important for the development of the foetus and help the pancreas to normalize maternal insulin production and reduce the risk of gestational diabetes. Ambrotose can be obtained from Jeyarani (Appendix C, page 312).

Birth Story: Quick Labour Christine

On Sunday 12th September 1999, my contractions began at 5.00am. I visualized and meditated until they were 5 minutes apart, and decided to go to the hospital. My due date was the 20th September, so this was a week early.

We arrived at the hospital at 11.30am, where I was found to be 2cm dilated. We were told it could be early evening before the baby came, so we asked to be left alone so Mark could help me with breathing techniques and visualizations. He also massaged my back and big toes, especially during the longer contractions. Suddenly at 2pm, I had an almighty urge to push. Mark dashed off to find a midwife who was astonished to find that I was fully dilated. At 2.10pm, Logan Tyler Harris made his appearance, weighing 7lbs 15oz.

I’m proud to say that I took no drugs, had no tears, cuts or stitches and am recovering rapidly. I’m blessing my good fortune at having met Gowri, having heard many ‘horror stories’ about labour and the delivery.

Thanks to Gowri I could cope with labour and manage the whole procedure. I’m so grateful for the preparation that I learnt by attending her classes.

Ayurveda and The Gentle Birth Method

Ayurvedic remedies and philosophies feature strongly in The Gentle Birth Method. Ayurveda is an ancient system of medicine that has become fashionable in the West in recent years, but it is an automatic reference tool for me – something that I grew up with which complements my conventional medical training. Literally translated, Ayur means ‘life’ and Veda means ‘science’. In India, where this ‘life science’ has been practised for thousands of years, it is a deeply respected and credible medical authority but I am particularly drawn to its holistic approach, especially its emphasis on emotional – as well as physical – caring for the pregnant mother and her unborn child.

Ayurveda groups the study of gynaecology, obstetrics and paediatrics together in a section of text called Kumara Bhritya, meaning ‘how to take care of the child’ and it draws a clear link between the mother’s well-being and the health of the embryo, including its impact on the implantation process, early foetal development and the whole pregnancy.

Ayurveda expounds that the character, physical attributes and health of a child begins with the mother and her pre-conceptual status – in terms of how well nourished, rested and emotionally prepared she is for pregnancy and motherhood. It also emphasizes the great need for the mother to be surrounded by the love and care of her partner. These values all align very closely to my own instincts about how we should care for expectant mothers and it is for these reasons that I allude to Ayurvedic wisdom throughout the programme.

Yoga is also an intrinsic part of Ayurveda and forms an important part of birth preparation. The section on exercise (see pages 75-83) outlines the benefits of yoga in pregnancy.

Ayurveda as a Diagnostic Tool

Ayurveda isn’t just a support system for my own beliefs. It is also a great clinical guide and its teachings on constitution and body type are used in my programme in order to further eliminate pregnancy symptoms and rebalance the body for birth.

In fact, these guidelines are so detailed and accurate that whenever a new mother enrols at my clinic, I can tell within moments the problems she is likely to encounter during her pregnancy. There’s nothing magical about it. In fact, many of you will be familiar with the physiological names given to physical builds – mesomorph, ectomorph and endomorph. Ayurveda works on a similar model.

In Ayurveda your body constitution is called your ‘prakruti’. Each person’s prakruti is composed of three body humours, or doshas, called vata, pitta and kapha. These represent a combination of the elements – water, air, fire, earth and so on – that, according to Ayurveda, make up the human body. Each dosha is responsible for different functions and parts of the body (see box below) so we each have all three doshas, although one or maybe two usually dominate. The dosha that dominates gives rise to a person’s prakruti, which governs their physical and emotional characteristics.

If a person lives a healthy life according to their ‘baseline’ prakruti (at birth) then they can remain healthy and in balance – as long as they do other things to keep themselves healthy, such as exercise and avoid drugs and too much alcohol. However, many people do not live healthy lives and their normal levels of vata, pitta and kapha become unbalanced, which can lead to ill health. In pregnancy particularly, there are sets of symptoms that each prakruti will be susceptible to, hence, by identifying which body composition you are, you can further tailor your diet and lifestyle to prevent some of the related problems.

So What Do Vata, Pitta and Kapha Govern?

Vata represents wind and movement. It governs motion, activity and sensory functions; it controls the activities of the nervous system, blood circulation, contraction and expansion of the lungs and heart, intestinal peristalsis and elimination, and the contractile process in muscle. Pitta represents fire and heating. It is responsible for all digestive and metabolic activities, regulating digestion and the secretions of the exocrine glands and the endocrine hormones.

Kapha represents liquid and cooling. It provides the static energy (strength) for holding body tissues together. It also provides lubricants at the various points of friction.

If any of the doshas become too dominant then the processes outlined above can cause complications.

On the following pages I have provided a basic breakdown of Ayurvedic principles, which you may find interesting and useful for more detailed diagnosis of how best to manage your pregnancy. However, whilst I am able to accurately use the Ayurvedic model in clinical practice, it takes many years to become an expert in the intricacies of Ayurveda, and it is not the aim of this book to list them here. I have kept the categories as simple as possible, but for those readers who still feel there is too much new information to absorb, stick to the general dietary guidelines at the beginning of this chapter. If, on the other hand, you are intrigued by the depth of an Ayurvedic assessment, I strongly recommend a personal consultation with an Ayurvedic practitioner, who can offer more comprehensive and accurate guidance.

Prakruti Analysis

Read each of the following statements and score them individually on a scale of one to five according to how accurate they are for you (0 = completely inappropriate, 5 = an accurate description). Add up the scores for each section – vata, pitta and kapha – and analyse the final scores to find your predominant dosha. Remember, the chart is a rough guide.

Your highest score indicates your dosha predominance. You could be a vata, pitta or kapha mother. I have described each type of mother below and provided advice on working with your predominant dosha in order to restore balance and optimum health. You may find two scores are very close – as many people are a combination of doshas rather than one distinct category – but regardless of how close the score, follow the guidelines for your dominant dosha.

Vata Mothers

Typical Characteristics

 Lean, small frame

 Dry skin

 Mentally excitable

 Weak constitution – prone to colds and illnesses

 Poor circulation

 Poor digestion with tendency to constipation

 Low energy

 May experience fainting

Vata in balance: alert and spontaneous

Vata out of balance: worried and experiences mood swings

During pregnancy

 May show signs of clinical anaemia.

 May feel mentally slowed down, sometimes leading to depression.

 May experience aches and pains all the way through pregnancy.

 May experience nausea in early pregnancy.

Note: Vata is often heightened during pregnancy, regardless of which prakruti you are.

How to Counteract Vata

Exercise

 Exercise in moderation, as the vata mother is rather weak – engage in mild to moderate exercise only.

 Walking and swimming are good.

 Do indulge in some form of exercise – it has a mood-elevating effect.

 Avoid going to the gym, especially in the first three months of pregnancy.

Food

 Eat 3 to 4 regular light meals a day that preferably contain a representation of all the tastes like salty, sour, bitter, sweet, pungent and astringent.

 Avoid snacks in between meals.

 Choose clear soups.

 Avoid mushrooms.

 For non-vegetarians, chicken soups are recommended.

 Fish is also good if you can tolerate it.

 Avoid cheese as vata mothers have poor digestive power, especially in early pregnancy.

 Baladi choornam (my Ayurvedic formulation) is very good for vata mothers.

Herbs

The following herbs can balance vata:

 Black pepper

 Dill seeds

 Cumin seeds

 Basil leaves

 Parsley

 Ginger

Music

 Relaxing and calming music is very good for balancing vata.

 Chanting is beneficial. Many cultures and different religious persuasions use chants (see pages 82-3 for some mantras). The Gayatri Mantra is nondenominational.

 If you are religious, and depending on your religious leaning, you may like to recite prayers, such as the rosary, or Buddhist or Benedictine chants that instil peace and harmony.

Physical Treatments

 Massage with oils can be amazingly effective in reducing excessive vata.

 Self-massage or being massaged by your partner on a regular basis, for 20-40 minutes, is recommended. Suitable oils are virgin olive oil, or sesame oil.

 Essential oils can also be used to reduce vata – try lavender, rose, or jasmine oil. Use from 4 to 10 drops in 20ml of a base oil. This can be used for self-massage or by a practitioner during general or Creative Healing massage.

 Reflexology reduces vata, calms the mind and gives mental clarity. It also improves digestion and speeds up gut motility, thereby relieving constipation.

Vata Labour Issues

Factors to consider during delivery:

 The pelvis is usually smaller.

 The nervous disposition of vata mothers means they may experience more pain if not prepared effectively for birth.

 Lots of preparation, both mental and physical, is needed to avoid surgical intervention.

 Lots of low-back massage as preparation for labour will facilitate a manageable labour and gentle birth.

 Vaginal oils and stretching techniques as preparation for birth are invaluable in preventing instrumental delivery.

 Vata mothers need continuous massage during labour. Oil massages on the back, neck, shoulders and lower limbs are very beneficial during labour.

 Vata mothers are more prone to having a retained placenta. This is not a big problem and doctors routinely administer an injection that forces the body to expel the placenta. However, many of my mothers – aiming for a natural birth – are not keen to submit to drugs at this late point in their baby’s birth, so in my self-hypnosis classes in London, I talk the mother through a hypnotic sequence in which she visualizes her body producing a surge of oxytocin (the hormone that encourages contractions) 15 minutes after the birth of the baby, thereby expelling the placenta. I have found this technique to be very effective on my vata mothers. If you are a vata mother, you can guide yourself through a short visualization of this hormonal occurrence – one or two minutes a day will be enough. You don’t need any medical expertise to do this – simply by suggesting this automatic hormonal production whilst your mind is deeply relaxed and receptive, you can pre-condition your body to expel your placenta within 10-15 minutes after the birth.

 Vata mothers can have longer labours due to poor expulsive forces during labour i.e. poor uterine contractions, or uncoordinated uterine action, which can lead to slow dilation of the cervix.

Pitta Mothers
Typical characteristics

 Skin redness

 Medium-size body frame

 Slightly oily skin

 Fluid retention

 Angry

 Mentally irritable and edgy

 Quick tempered

 Intolerant of others’ behaviour

 Experiences skin burning sensations

 Feels too hot all the time

 Can’t tolerate hot weather

 Hates closed environments

 Prone to feeling faint

 Prone to increased sweating

 Good memory

 Sound sleeper

Pitta in balance: perceptive and intense

Pitta out of balance: angry, impatient and frustrated

During Pregnancy

 Prone to bleeding in early pregnancy

 Prone to post-partum mental problems

 Excessive appetite

 Can have semi-solid stools

How to Counteract Pitta

The remedy is to cool and calm everything down.

Exercise and Lifestyle Changes

 All gentle forms of exercise, e.g. gentle swimming or gentle tai chi, would be beneficial. Pitta mothers must take care not to increase their heart-rate by more than 110 beats per minute as this can aggravate pitta.

 Walks with your partner. Walking in the moonlight is specifically recommended in the Ayurvedic text because it cools you down.

 Pitta mothers need a lot more love and affection than other mothers.

Food

 Avoid hot and spicy foods like pepper, chillies, garlic, vinegar, salad creams, pickles and sour things in general.

 Acidic foods are heat-producing as a general rule and this aggravates pitta.

 No alcohol as it causes your system to heat up, aggravating pitta.

 Avoid foods that are too hot in temperature.

 Avoid cheese as it is very difficult to digest.

 Most vegetables are good – cucumber, marrows and pumpkins are ideal; beetroots and carrots are very cooling and recommended.

 Eat melons as a separate meal – they need special enzymes from your pancreas to digest them. Eating them with other food puts a huge strain on your digestive system.

 Eat grains such as rice, millet, corn and oats in moderation (not more than 1 small cup of any of these cooked grains per meal).

 Try to cut out tomatoes. If you must eat them restrict it to only once a week. Tomato is very acidic and can cause aches and pains. Cooked tomato is worse than raw tomato.

 Coconut is very good for reducing pitta. The white kernel and coconut milk, which is extracted from the white kernel, can be used for cooking. However, use only small amounts of coconut in your cooking, as it is high in fat.

 Apples are very good.

 Avoid citrus fruits as acidic food increases pitta.

 Having a banana once a week can reduce pitta. As a general rule I do not recommend them as they are too fattening and mucus retentive.

 Vegetable soups with herbs are very soothing.

 Congee, an overcooked broth of rice with water and salt, is very easy to digest. To make it more interesting, a little garlic or ginger and a few vegetables can be added to it.

 Milk is cooling and is good for reducing pitta. Ideally it should be goat’s milk – try to avoid cow’s milk unless it is labelled with the A-2 protein as opposed to A-1. The A-1 proteins that are found in the herds of some cows produce undesirable effects in the human digestive system and have been associated with gut problems (specifically colon cancer), coronary disease, diabetes mellitus (Type I), multiple sclerosis and autism. In the near future, it will be possible to segregate the cows that produce A-2 milk from those that produce A-1 milk. This will be done by a simple test on a hair of each cow. (A-2 milk is already on the shelf in Australia and New Zealand.) Closer to home, Guernsey cows produce A-2 milk. However, Jersey cows produce A-1 milk, so if you are buying milk look for pure Guernsey cow milk. (This was reported on BBC Health News, 9 April 2001.)

Herbs

 Choose cooling herbs like coriander in food.

 The herb Bala (Cida codifolia), a main ingredient in my Baladi Choornam drink, is very important for keeping pitta under control.

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